Another reason to watch out for Commies

I posted just a few days ago on the fact that the old communist regime in Czechoslovakia siezed a lot of Church properties, and the current Government still won't return it, not even the Cathedral Church.

Recently, Bishop Fu, the Chinese Government's approved Bishop died. They have announced that they would shortly appoint a new prelate, according to Zenit. It's bad, because this is on the heels of the illicit ordination of some bishops last year.

According to the South China Morning Post, the vice chairman of the Patriotic Association said that Bishop Fu's greatest wish was the normalization of ties with the Vatican.

However, the official reiterated China's conditions for establishing diplomatic ties with the Holy See: severing relations with Taiwan and "not meddling with internal affairs," which China understands to include the naming of bishops.

Benedict XVI has said he'll write a letter to Chinese Catholics. And after a Vatican study earlier this year of the Church's situation in China, there is talk that a commission will be established to further evaluate the issue.

I'm not sure he will get his wish any time soon, not unless the Chinese government changes their position on religion. I've read some about this upcoming letter, and I wonder what it will be about. I think, in some ways, that it might be like the letter that went out to all the Catholics in Germany after the rise of Hitler. I also wonder if it will be one of those secret letters that they will have to sneak into the country and spread secretly to all the churches.

Pray for them, that they may be moved to accept the light that faith has to offer, and find the way to reuinite with Rome.

-JG